"Is that possible?" Jack asked, giving his full attention to Giovani. "Can we track Cadence down and convince her to become one of us?"
"Of course, brother," Giovani stated emphatically. "Why not? If you can be changed, she can be changed, right?" He withheld the information that Cadence could never be turned in to a Vampire because she was already a Vampire Hunter. Jack had no idea that his ex-girlfriend was now his deadliest enemy, and telling him so would likely work against Giovani's plan.
"Well, let me give her a call," Jack stated, absently reaching for his cell phone, before realizing that he no longer had his phone in his possession. "Dammit," he said, remembering that it was gone. "I don't have my phone."
"No problem," Giovani said nonchalantly. "We can get you another one easily enough. I prefer not to carry one myself, but it's not hard to procure such items if one finds them necessary."
Jack was a bit relieved. Though becoming a Vampire was not something he had ever considered, now that he was one, wrapping his mind around that was hard enough; at least he wouldn't have to go through the rest of eternity without the human comfort of a cell phone. Considering the other human items he had always taken for granted, he asked, "What about money?" hoping Giovani had a solution for that as well.
"Sure, no problem," Giovani replied. "I'll take you back to my place, get you everything you need."
"That's great," Jack said, nodding his head in relief. "I really appreciate that."
"Course, I don't live around here. My place is in Omaha, but my Corvette will get us there quickly enough," Giovani explained.
"Oh, okay," Jack replied. "Why are you in Lincoln then?"
Giovani smiled. "To find you, man," he responded. "You and I are brothers. I couldn't leave you out here on your own."
Jack had just assumed that Giovani was using the word "brother" as a term of endearment, not actually stating a fact of their relation. "Oh," he said, nodding his head again. "So, Holland is your mother, too?"
"Exactly," Giovani nodded. "We've got quite a few brothers and sisters around the world. You will be well taken care of."
Jack was responding, but Giovani did not hear exactly what he had to say. His attention was suddenly drawn away by an uneasy feeling, as if they were being watched. He tried to refocus and caught only the end of what Jack was saying. ". . . by myself forever."
"No, definitely not," Giovani replied, assuming he had said he didn't want to be by himself forever or he thought he would be by himself forever. "Why don't we go ahead and head over to my apartment now?" Giovani said. Without waiting for Jack's response, he slid out of the booth, standing next to the table, the impatience beginning to show on his face.
Jack was a bit concerned. "Okay," he said slowly. He finished the last gulp of his beer as Giovani threw a twenty on the table. "Are you in a hurry?" Jack asked, beginning to feel a little skeptical of Giovani's motivations.
"No," Giovani replied, attempting to be nonchalant. "I just can't wait to show you around, introduce you to some people, you know, that sort of thing."
Again, Jack nodded slowly. Sliding out of the booth, he began to follow Giovani toward the door. Despite his assurances that he was not in that big of a hurry, Giovani seemed to be moving much more quickly than a human would, and Jack was afraid it may be noticeable to the other patrons. "Slow down," he said, trying to stay within earshot of his new friend without drawing attention to them.
"Sorry," Giovani replied. "Sometimes it is hard to remember to look human."
"You're telling me," Jack mumbled. Then, spying a payphone on the wall near the exit, he realized that Cadence could potentially still be in Lincoln. After all, she had taken him to the doctor's office just a few days ago. "Let me try calling Cadence really quickly," Jack said, not waiting for a reply. As he stepped toward the phone and inserted the correct coinage, he glanced over his shoulder to see Giovani standing impatiently in the doorway.
"I don't know if we have time for that right now," Giovani admitted, stepping back toward Jack.
Jack was already dialing, not paying too much attention to Giovani. "Let me just see if she is still in town and if she wants to meet me somewhere. Maybe she'll go with us."
"Jack, she thinks you are dead," Giovani reminded him, as the distinct sound of a ringing phone came over the receiver.
"I'll handle it," Jack said, as if he came back from the dead every day.
Giovani glanced out the window again. He could plainly see the forms of two people approaching the bar, and he was certain now that he recognized them. "We've got to go," he said quietly in Jack's general direction.
"Cadence?" Jack was saying, ignoring his brother. "I need to see you."
Just then, Giovani flung his hand down on the receiver, disconnecting the call. "We've got to go, now!" he spat, pulling the phone out of Jack's hand and yanking on his jacket.
Jack was stunned, but his feet began to move, and he allowed Giovani to pull him out the door, following him toward a black Corvette, which was parked nearby. Even before he reached the door handle, the sounds of approaching footfalls behind him caught his attention. He had no idea who was chasing them or why, but like his brother, he felt compelled to get into the car and get away as quickly as possible. He jumped into the car just as Giovani started the engine and shifted into gear.
Without checking for oncoming traffic, Giovani flipped the car around in a full U-turn and sped off in the opposite direction, away from the individuals who were clearly after them. Jack glanced back to see two women coming to a halt just a few feet away from where the car had been parked. They were both wearing long, black leather jackets, and though he couldn't tell for sure, it seemed to Jack that they were armed. "Who the hell was that?" he asked, reaching for his seatbelt out of habit.
"Those two lovely ladies were Vampire Hunters," Giovani replied. "Congratulations, brother. You just came within inches of getting yourself destroyed on your very first day of your new existence."
Jack shook his head in disbelief. If this is what his new life was going to be like, he wasn't sure he was up for it.
